The Republican Party's approach towards women lately has been pretty ridiculous, complete with restrictive legislation, insultingrhetoric, unnecessary medical procedures, inexplicable rhetoric on rape, opposition to pay equity, and antiquated views on gender roles.
But Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.) pushed the envelope on the House floor yesterday calling for children to take classes on traditional gender roles because fathers are "a little bit better" at some things than mothers.
In context, Gingrey, a right-wing congressman currently running for the U.S. Senate, was talking about his support for the Defense of Marriage Act, when he argued:
"You know, maybe part of the problem is we need to go back into the schools at a very early age, maybe at the grade school level, and have a class for the young girls and have a class for the young boys and say, 'You know, this is what's important. This is what a father does that is maybe a little different, maybe a little bit better than the talents that a mom has in a certain area. And the same thing for the young girls, that, you know, this is what a mom does, and this is what is important from the standpoint of that union which we call marriage.'"
Gingrey went on to boast that his daughters and daughter-in-law all work outside the home, "but they're still there as moms."
Gingrey is perhaps best known for defending Todd Akin's "legitimate rape" comments in the wake of the 2012 elections.
Is it possible Republicans are trying to make the gender gap worse? Are politicians like Gingrey embracing misogyny as some kind of deliberate campaign tactic?